Naruto Immersive Replay, The Curse of the Sharingan

The founding ceremony was held at noon. Mito Uzumaki stood on the high platform, feeling the weight of thousands of gazes. Her voice was clear and bright as a spring as she recited the oath.

But out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Hinata Hatozaki's younger sister, a sickly-looking girl gazing at him intently.

"Wow, that's amazing..." Hinata Amane's murmur was carried to your ears by the wind.

You turn to look at the thin Hyuga girl and find that her face is as pale as paper.

"Who are you?" Tianyin suddenly turned around, a glint of silver flashing in her pure white eyes.

"An insignificant person."

“Your heartbeat… is so slow, like a stream in winter, frozen on the surface but flowing gently underneath.” She immediately covered her mouth after saying this, realizing how rude she had been.

"I'm sorry, Nagi-sama! She's still young, please forgive her." Hinata Hatozaki suddenly stepped between you.

“It’s alright.” You interrupted him, your gaze lingering on Tianyin’s forehead for a second.

As you were about to leave after the ceremony, Hinata Hatozaki blocked your way, his faint scent of mint mixed with the sea breeze wafting towards you.

"If there is an afterlife, I hope to meet Lord Nagi sooner." His voice was very low, and his knuckles turned white from the force.

Mito Uzumaki appeared out of nowhere in the shadows of the pillars. "He's fallen in love with you." This wasn't a question.

"He was just grateful that I lifted the curse." You didn't stop walking.

“No, eyes don’t lie…” Mito suddenly fell silent. In the distance, Hyuga Amane was leaning against the wall, her eyes closed, yet she gave the illusion that she was completely seen through.

At the banquet that evening, you stood alone on the edge of the terrace, the moonlight casting a long shadow that contrasted sharply with the noisy light and shadow inside.

"You really are here." Hinata Amane's voice was as light as a cat's footsteps. The girl handed over a cup of tea, her fingers so thin that you could see the outline of her knuckles. "Brother is drunk and has been talking nonsense."

You took the teacup but didn't drink it. "If you're not feeling well, you should rest earlier."

“Because the burden of ‘mind’s eye’ is too heavy.” Amane suddenly said, and seeing you finally turn your gaze away, she smiled like a child who had just pulled off a prank. “I can see it, Nagi-sama’s chakra… like black flames wrapped in ice.”

“Don’t worry,” Tianyin coughed, blood seeping from between her fingers, “I won’t tell my brother… nor will I tell this woman’s name.”

She glanced at Mito, who was being fawned over by everyone in the banquet hall, a hint of envy flashing in her eyes. "Power is so beautiful, isn't it?"

When the fifth drop of blood dripped from the tip of Lu Helin's blade, the green bamboo curtain of the Daming Mansion had already been stained crimson.

Blood beads slid down the blade and landed on the brocade carpet, silently seeping into the gold-embroidered vine pattern. The young warrior stepped over the corpses and walked forward, the jade pendant at his waist jingling softly with each step.

That was the ancient seal you tied on yourself before you left, engraved with the words "Fengdu".

“Foster father is right.” Rin wiped the blood off her knife and looked at the boy curled up under the golden throne. The youngest son of the daimyo of the Land of Wind, who had been enjoying sweet yokan surrounded by maids just last night, was now trembling like a leaf, his magnificent robes soaked with cold sweat.

"The nobles of the Land of Wind...are indeed much weaker than ninjas."

An explosion was heard outside the window, and the flames illuminated the pre-dawn sky.

Those were the assassins he had personally trained, cleaning up the last resistance forces in Daming Prefecture.

Five years ago, when you rescued him from the ruins of the battlefield, he was a frail child who couldn't even hold a knife properly. Now, he stands at the pinnacle of power, treading on the most noble bloodline of the Wind Kingdom.

How did your adoptive father tie the knot?

He suddenly drifted off for a moment, recalling how pale, slender fingers flew through the dark blue knots, and how, as they tightened, the fingernails had inadvertently grazed his Adam's apple. That sensation, which was neither painful nor not painful, subtly overlapped with the bloodstains remaining on his neck now.

"What I want is not a puppet," your voice suddenly rang in his ear, as cold as the icicles that never melt in the Snow Country, "but a blade that can stir up a storm."

With the Golden Throne within reach, Rin turned and walked toward the trembling child.

When he placed the blood-stained jade pendant into the child's palm, the eldest son of the famous king was so frightened that he forgot to cry. This action strangely overlapped with the gesture you made five years ago when you reached out to him in the ruins of the battlefield.

“Tell those nobles,” Lu Helin said, lifting the child’s chin with his scabbard, “either they enthrone a new ruler within three days, or I’ll send my assassins to their houses for breakfast.”

Light cast shadows on the blood-stained floor tiles. As Rin finally sat on the golden throne, she suddenly remembered the first time she killed someone.

At twelve years old, he held the kunai you gave him, while a spy from the Land of Earth was tied up opposite him.

"Your hands are shaking so badly?" You grabbed his wrist from behind, the sharp end of a kunai pressed against the spy's throat. "Remember, there will be a resistance when the blade goes into the third rib—"

The moment blood splattered on the boy's face, he heard you whisper in his ear, "This is your true growth."

Now, the armrests of the Golden Throne are inlaid with jade. Lin stroked the jade pendant and suddenly chuckled softly. What an ingenious scheme!

By having the illegitimate son, who carried royal blood, slaughter the entire royal family, the legitimacy of the Wind Kingdom's nobility was shattered, and the bloodshed of this coup would never be washed away.

As the midday sun scorched the Daimyo's palace square, the new ruler of the Land of Wind made a move that shook the entire ninja world.

"Effective immediately, the hereditary system of nobility is abolished." Shikaga Rin's voice resounded throughout the capital through a chakra megaphone, with the former daimyo clan kneeling at his feet, chained together. "All official positions will be filled based on merit—including ninjas."

In the instant the crowd erupted in chaos, he personally beheaded the former daimyo, and amidst the splattering blood, the jade pendant stood out starkly.

The nobles hiding in the shadows were ashen-faced. They had intended to support a puppet, but they hadn't expected the knife to be so sharp.

Even more unexpectedly, the young daimyo then said, "We will immediately submit a letter of alliance to the Land of Whirlpools."

The way he wiped the blood off the knife was just like that of a black-haired woman on a distant island. "The Land of Wind will usher in a new order."

When the news reached Uzushio Castle, you were playing shogi with Mito Uzumaki.

"Your little wolf cub has bitten someone." Mito dropped a gold general. "The nobles of the great nations are probably going to have a sleepless night."

You stare at your king, cornered on the chessboard, and think, "Not enough." Suddenly, you knock your king over with a piece. As the chessboard collapses, a flock of seabirds startles up outside the window.

Madara Uchiha stood before the stone monument at the Naka Shrine, his fingertips tracing the ancient characters, his eyes reflecting the dim light of the candlelight.

"The Land of Wind and the Land of Whirlpools are allied..." he murmured, his fingers tightening slightly, causing tiny cracks to appear on the stone tablet.

He should have thought of it earlier.

She possessed a rare ability to foresee the future, but she used it to interfere with his intelligence network. The spies she sent out brought back only trivial and insignificant news, as if the alliance between the Land of Whirlpools and the Land of Wind was just an illusion.

"Heh..." Madara sneered, his crimson Sharingan slowly rotating in the darkness. "Nagi, you think you can fool me like this?"

But he did not act immediately.

He was also very curious about what Uchiha Nagi was plotting.

The laboratory lights shimmered with an eerie blue hue under the refraction of the test tubes. Your fingertips traced the edge of the operating table, where a fresh burn mark lay. It seemed Tobirama's recent Fire Release experiment had failed once again.

As you turned toward the source of the sound, the soft rustling of leather gloves abruptly stopped. "What are you doing?"

In the warm yellow light, Tobirama Senju almost bounced as he turned around. A stray strand of unruly bangs swayed in his silver hair. His movements to hide something were so fast that ordinary people couldn't see it at all, but your Sharingan clearly caught the glint of white jade reflected in the sleeve.

“…I thought you weren’t coming.” Tobirama quickly regained his composure, a sarcastic smile playing on his lips. “After all, the Land of Wind and the Land of Whirlpools are currently at their peak; you should be very busy.”

Ignoring his probing, you went straight to the operating table. "Begin the interstitial cell transplantation. I need this."

Tobirama stared at your retreating figure, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.

"……it is good."

He turned to prepare the medicine and experimental dishes, his movements swift yet with a subtle tension.

You glanced at the petri dish in Tobirama's hand, which contained a kind of luminous green liquid that shimmered and flowed slowly as if it were alive.

"This is it?"

"Hmm." Tobirama responded briefly, placing the petri dish on the tool rack next to the operating table.

Without another word, you lay down on the operating table, but were suddenly interrupted by Tobirama just as you were about to lie flat—

Stop what you're doing and look up at him.

Tobirama approached, reached out and gathered your long, loose hair, gently tying it up with a thin rope.

"To avoid surgical errors."

He explained, but his fingertips trembled slightly the moment they touched your hair—not from nervousness, but from a thrill that was almost excitement.

You noticed something was off, but didn't point it out, simply responding with a curt reply.

During the ensuing surgery, Tobirama's behavior became increasingly strange—

"Your movements are incorrect; I need to adjust your posture."

"The light is blocked, I need to get closer."

"Your condition is not very stable; I need to check you again."

"...I'm a little thirsty, please wait a moment."

Your patience finally ran out. "What exactly are you planning?"

"Start now."

Chapter 57 The Contract

Interstitial cells are injected into your carotid artery, and the bright green liquid merges into your bloodstream the instant—

"Well--!"

Intense pain swept through your body like a tidal wave. Your fingers gripped the edge of the operating table tightly, your knuckles turning white from the force. You bit your thin lips until they bled, and blood trickled down the corner of your mouth.

Seeing your pained expression, Tobirama, as if possessed, offered his arm to you.

"The pain during the initial fusion phase needs to be redirected... I'm fine, if you don't mind..."

Before you could finish speaking, you'd already taken a bite!

"hiss--!"

Tobirama gasped, but quickly got used to the pain.

He looked down at you, his profile etched with the curse, the veins barely visible beneath his pale skin. Pain made his eyelashes tremble slightly, yet he stubbornly refused to utter a sound.

His Adam's apple bobbed.

I don't know whether I wish time would slow down or speed up.

As you wipe the blood from your lips, you see deep, bone-revealing teeth marks on Tobirama's arm; those bleeding indentations are eerie yet carry a sense of destiny.

"You're not going to bandage me up? You evil Uchiha."

"The evil Uchiha?" You raised an eyebrow, repeating his earlier taunt, and reached for the first-aid kit. "I thought the second-in-command of the Senju clan wasn't afraid of pain."

When the disinfectant alcohol touched the wound, Tobirama's gasp made you pause. You looked up unintentionally and found him staring blankly at your right eye, his red pupils behind his glasses churning with unfathomable emotions.

"What are you looking at?"

"...The cell fusion was a success." Tobirama hastily looked away but saw your black hair, which had fallen as you were bandaging, brush against your wrist.

Your fingertips were slightly cool, and the moment they touched his skin, Tobirama could almost feel his pulse quicken.

Tobirama stared at your lowered eyelashes and suddenly said, "You are better at taking care of people than I thought."

You glanced at him, your eyes cold. "I just don't want to owe you a favor."

"Is that so?" Tobirama chuckled. "Then why didn't you hesitate when you bit me just now?"

"Alright." You stood up. "The fusion of Hashirama cells needs time to be observed. I will wait for your report in the Land of Whirlpools."

"Just like that, you're leaving?" Tobirama leaned against the lab bench, his white hair gleaming coldly under the light. "Not planning to talk some more? Like... about the Land of Wind?"

Your steps paused slightly.

"You were indeed testing me." You turned your head, your right eye's black pupil unfathomable.

"Same here." Tobirama shrugged. "You used Shikaga Rin to stir up trouble in the Land of Wind, wasn't it just to distract Madara?"

You paused for a moment, then said softly, "You're smarter than I thought."

“But you’re bolder than I thought.” Tobirama looked directly at you. “Madara won’t stand idly by.”

“I know.” You turn and walk toward the door. “That’s why I need Hashirama’s cells.”

Tobirama stared at your retreating figure and suddenly said, "Next time you come, let me know in advance."

You stopped walking, without turning around. "Why?"

"So I can clean up the lab properly," Tobirama said with a hint of teasing, "so you won't find fault with it."

You then pushed open the door and left.

The laboratory fell silent again. Tobirama looked down at the bandage on his arm, his fingertips gently tracing its surface, where the warmth of your touch still lingered.

"What a... dangerous woman," he murmured, his gaze falling on the white jade flute hidden in his sleeve.

The candlelight hanging on the stone wall cast Madara's shadow onto the "Uchiha Tajima" memorial tablet. He stared at his outstretched hands, the burn marks left by yesterday's experiment still visible in the lines of his palms—proof of the failed attempt to forcibly fuse with Hashirama's cells.

"Reflections on life and death..."

Madara's voice echoed in the cave. He remembered the blood and tears he shed when his father died, the trembling embrace Izuna shared on the night Izuna awakened the Kaleidoscope Sharingan, and even Nagi's resolute departure from him.